It is generally believed, and also
correct, that before migration, believers were not allowed to
kill anyone. When Muslims, tired of constant persecution and
torment from the idolaters, would ask for permission to use
arms, they were told to be patient, persevere, show restraint,
remember God frequently and trust in Him. The instruction to
kill came at the time of migration, and, as stated before, was
to remain in effect until Islam had gained supremacy over all
religions in the entire country. After the migration of the
Prophet (sws) and believers, the Quraysh were satisfied that
they had rid themselves of the Muslims and had begun to plan
ways and means whereby the power of Muslims could be
completely destroyed. To counter these actions, the Prophet (sws)
too, took steps which could address these schemes. We now
consider these steps taken by the Prophet (sws), keeping in
view the dangers posed by the Quraysh.

Preventive
Measures

1. The
Prophet (sws) regularly sent persons to collect information
around Madinah. If news came from any quarter of a potential
attack by the enemy, he would keep awake throughout the night
and arrange for a close vigil to ensure that the enemy did not
attack them unaware. Despite this, one year after migration,
Makkah’s Kurz ibn Jabir Fihri attacked a pasture which was
three miles from the city and which belonged to the people of
Madinah and stole several animals. The Prophet (sws) followed
him but could not find him.

2. The
Prophet had signed a covenant called the Covenant of Madinah
with all citizens of Madinah, including the tribes of Aws and
Khazraj and the Jews. This included the following conditions
in particular:

a) No one was to give protection to the Quraysh or their
allies

b) If Madinah was attacked, Muslims and Jews were to
defend it together

c) If Muslims made peace with any group, the Jews were to
be liable to follow the agreement and if the Jews made any
such agreement, Muslims were bound to follow it. However,
there was to be no responsibility on any signatory to
cooperate in a religious war of the other group.

d) If any group was required to leave Madinah for
purposes of war, it would have rights of defense and peace and
this would be also applicable to those who remained in Madinah.
No one would be persecuted and no one was to break his/her
promises.

Deliberation upon these conditions shows
that the Prophet (sws) was concerned about hostility from the
Quraysh and the danger of an attack as a consequence. Hence,
he had penned the Covenant of Madinah as a counter step.

3. The
Prophet (sws) also signed agreements with the Jewish tribes of
Banu Nadir, Banu Qurayzah and Banu Qaynuqa’, who were settled
around Madinah, so that they would remain neutral and not
cause any harm while living in the Muslim centre, by becoming
a tool in the hands of the Quraysh. The tribes of Aws and
Khazraj already had agreements of cooperation and support with
these tribes, so the Prophet (sws) too, did not face any
difficulty in making similar agreements.

4. The
Prophet (sws) penned cooperation agreements with tribes who
were settled along the route to Makkah. These tribes included
Juhaynah, Banu Damrah and Banu Mudlij. They were allies of the
Aws and the Khazraj earlier. The advent of Islam in Madinah
paved the way with these tribes for agreements, that covered
the following clauses:

a) The
life and property of members of the tribes were to be safe and
sacrosanct

b) If
any one were to oppress or attack them, they were to be helped
in their defense

c) If
any oppression was related to their own people or their
religion, it was not necessary to provide support to them.

These agreements were signed with the
above mentioned three tribes during the first year of
migration, several months before the Battle of Badr. The
Prophet (sws) had gone to visit them to finalize these
agreements along with 150 companions. Some narrators say that
the Ansar were not involved in any of the Prophet (sws)’s
missions before the Battle of Badr, but the number of these
missions and the nature of relations of the Aws and the
Khazraj with these tribes indicate that the Ansar must have
accompanied the Prophet (sws) in these missions. Biographers
have named these battles ghazwat and they are called battles
of Buwat, Abwa and Dhu al-‘Ashirah respectively, although no
preparations necessary for a battle were made, nor did the
Prophet (sws) take any step that may be considered a war like
action. When he reached Bawat, a trade caravan of the Quraysh,
led by Umayyah ibn Khalaf was passing through. Similarly, when
he reached Dhu al-‘Ashirah, he was informed that a caravan of
the Quraysh with Abu Sufyan in charge had just gone by.
Orientalists claim that Muslims had taken up highway robbery
after migration. Had this been the case, why did the Prophet (sws)
not take advantage of those two opportunities, when a large
number of supporters ready to lay down their lives were with
him and could have easily attacked the caravans? Meeting the
trade convoys and not harming them seems to prove that these
events had taken place just to reject the accusations of the
Orientalists. The fact is that all three journeys were
political in nature and their purpose was to sign cooperation
agreements with the tribes that had settlements along the
routes in case Madinah was attacked by the Quraysh. If one
presupposes that the Prophet (sws) was informed of the
movements of trade convoys of the Quraysh, the maximum that
could be said about choice of timings is that the Prophet (sws)
wished to make the Quraysh aware that he was watching out and
to create a sense of awe among them of the power exercised by
the Muslims. Another reason for taking such large numbers of
companions on these journeys could have been to familiarize
them with the terrain and train them for future journeys which
may have been necessary to be taken during battles. This is
the same objective for which battle exercises are carried out
in current times.

5. Before
the Battle of Badr, the Prophet (sws) sent small parties of
companions in various directions from time to time. These
missions are called sariyyah.

6. In the
seventh month of migration, the Prophet (sws) sent a group of
30, led by his uncle, Hamzah (rta) to the coastal region
occupied by the tribe of Juhaynah. There, they came across 300
soldiers from the Quraysh. The two groups were close to coming
to swords but a battle was prevented by the timely
intervention of Majadi ibn ‘Amr, the leader of Juhaynah. When
the Prophet (sws) was informed, he praised the efforts of
Majadi ibn ‘Amr. At that event, the purpose behind 300
soldiers of the Quraysh could only have been either military
or political, but not trade. If the objective of the sariyyah
was skirmish with the Quraysh, the Prophet (sws) would not
have praised the peacemaking efforts made by Majdi.

In Shawwal of the first year of
migration, the Prophet (sws) sent a group of 60 people led by
his cousin, ‘Ubaydah ibn al-Harith (rta) to Juhfah, which is a
place between Makkah and Badr. There they came across an army
of 200 from the Quraysh, but matters did not reach the point
of war. The large number of soldiers of the Quraysh indicates
that they were not traveling for purposes of trade, otherwise
there would not have been such a large party. Trade convoys
usually had more animals to carry goods and the men would be
40-50 in number only.

During Dhu al-Qa‘dah of the first year
hijrah, 20 people led by Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas (rta) came to
Kharrar, close to Juhfah and then returned to Madinah.

If the objective of these missions was to
rob trade convoys, as claimed by Western historians, at least
one such event should have taken place. What sort of highway
robbers were the companions that they would undertake such
long journeys and when faced with the Quraysh, not harm them
in any way? The fact was that none of these missions were
carried out for the purpose of robbery. They were meant to
assess what mischief the Quraysh were up to and to keep a
watchful eye on their activities. Additionally, they were
meant to warn the Quraysh that the Muslims were not unaware of
the need for their own defence.

The Sariyyah of ‘Abdullah ibn Jahash (rta)

The first sariyyah in which
bloodshed took place was in Rajab, second hijrah. The Prophet
(sws) had put his cousin, ‘Abdullah ibn Jahash (rta) in charge
of this sariyyah, and it had eight Muhajirun. They were
ordered to put up their camp at Nakhlah, a place in the north
east outside the boundaries of Makkah, and gather information
about the Quraysh. It so happened that a small trade convoy of
the Quraysh set up camp very close to them in the dark of the
night. Fighting ensued and both sides used arms, as a result
of which the leader of the Quraysh convoy, ‘Amr ibn al-Hadri,
who was also the son of ‘Abdullah al-Hadri, an ally of Harb
ibn Umayyah, a leader of Makkah, was killed. Two young men,
‘Uthman ibn ‘Abdullah ibn al-Mughirah (a cousin of Khalid ibn
Walid) and al-Hakam ibn Kaysan were taken prisoners. ‘Uthman’s
brother Nawfal ran to Makkah and informed the Quraysh of this
incident. ‘Adullah ibn Jahash broke up his camp immediately
for fear of being caught and returned to Madinah. The Prophet
(sws) was saddened to know of this activity as it had exceeded
the boundaries of the parameters of the assignment.

The incidents of this sariyyah provide an
opportunity to Orientalists to loosen their tongues in sarcasm
because they find in this the only argument to accuse the
companions of robbery and prove that the greed to loot wealth
became the reason for the Battle of Badr later. In our view,
the Prophet (sws) himself had set the purpose of this sariyyah,
which was to stay in concealment and unearth information about
the Quraysh. No Muslim, as long as he lived, could have
disobeyed the Prophet’s clear instructions. It is also worth
considering that only a few Muslims, more than 12 destinations
away from their centre and so close to that of their enemy
could not have endangered themselves in order to rob the
convoy. The fact should also be kept in mind that the people
in the Muslim group were relatives of the Makkans. Their faces
were not unknown to the idolaters, nor was there any
misunderstanding about their religious beliefs and thoughts.
It is more likely that the idolaters had started the fight in
their arrogance of being more powerful and close to Makkah,
and faced losses as a consequence. Or, the Muslims may have
sensed the danger of Makkah being informed and may have
attacked the convoy to prevent this information reaching the
Quraysh. Whatever the reason for this skirmish, it became
important due to its consequences.

This skirmish with the Makkans took place
on the last day of Rajab. According to research by Ibn Kathir,
the instruction to take custody of the qiblah was also given
during Rajab. The Muslims had been warned in that instruction
that their difficulties would increase after the announcement.
Circumstances would demand major sacrifices from them and wars
would be imminent in order to take control of the House of God
from the idolaters. It is possible that the Prophet (sws) may
have sent the members of the sariyyah of ‘Abdullah ibn Jahash
(ra) to go so close to Makkah in order to find out the
reaction of the Quraysh to the situation that arose after that
announcement. They may have been making arrangements for this
when the convoy of the Quraysh came upon them and the
situation may have evolved into the incidents that have been
stated above.